Interesting facts about Canada's PMs

Macdonald a widower at 42

1857 — Isabella Macdonald, the long-suffering wife of Canada West politician John A. Macdonald, dies in Kingston. Her death is likely the result of consumption (later called tuberculosis), but the exact cause is never resolved.

Her health problems began a year or two after marrying her cousin John. He spent many hours by her bedside for more than a decade, a pressure that grew tougher to balance with his new duties last month as Premier of the United Canadas.